Continuous ODI changes see Pakistan heading for Wa-qar crash

It is an open secret that national side coach does not want either Shehzad or Umar Akmal in the team

In Tests, Pakistan recently equalled their all-time highest ranking at second. In ODIs, they made it into the top eight by the skin of their teeth to qualify for the Champions Trophy. Clearly, something is amiss.

Perhaps the answer lies in the dichotomy of selection policies. While the Test side has benefited from a stable core that has grown in stature over the years, ODI players constantly cast nervy glances over their shoulders.

Mohammad Hafeez, Azhar Ali, Younus Khan, Misbahul Haq, Asad Shafiq and Sarfraz Ahmed are all virtual certainties to start every single Test. In return of this confidence, they have delivered series after series. Ahmed Shehzad, who impressed in his 11 Tests before facing the chop, is the only casualty of a top seven that has more or less remain unchanged.

The opener struggled recently in Sri Lanka, scoring just 143 runs in three Tests, but as an unpleasant change in policy, he was removed from the starting eleven against England rather than being backed when he struggled.

Shehzad suffered a similar fate in the ODIs when he was dropped after the World Cup for the now infamous series against Bangladesh as Pakistan were whitewashed 3-0. Poor discipline and unprofessional behaviour were given as the reasons for his removal, rather than any issue with his on-field performances.

After missing out the historic Zimbabwe series in Lahore, Shehzad was reinstated for the Sri Lanka tour, where he scored a solid, if unspectacular, 209 runs in five matches.

But once again a poor run of form in Zimbabwe —where he made just 62 in three matches — saw him return to the bench.

It is an open secret that Waqar Younis does not want either Shehzad or Umar Akmal in the team, often suggesting that the two need to play domestic cricket for a while in order to improve their discipline.

The selectors, however, have persisted with Shehzad, feeling that the Lahore-born deserves his chance. But Waqar does not feel the same, and Shan Masood and Mohammad Hafeez opened the innings in the first two Tests against England; with Masood making way for Azhar Ali in the third.

Considering the form of the trio, and the fact that Hafeez and Azhar are two of the plethora of ‘undroppables’ in the Test side, few eyebrows were raised at that decision. That, however, changed once the ODIs came along.

In the coloured kits, it seemed that Waqar was going out of his way to keep Shehzad on the bench.

In the first match, Bilal Asif was asked to open the innings despite the all-rounder’s preference of coming in late in the innings. As a result, Asif looked out of place and ill at ease; in the end he made just two.

Asif, who had recently taken a five-for against Zimbabwe, was axed for the next match — with little consideration given to the fact that he was played out of position.

Younus Khan’s retirement meant that Peshawar’s middle-order duo Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Rizwan made it into the side.

Iftikhar — who had never before travelled with the international side, let alone play for it — reached Dubai from Lahore at six in the morning on the day of the match. He then travelled by road to Abu Dhabi, exhausted and jet-lagged, reaching the city around four hours before the match.

The 25-year-old was still asked to make his debut over the rested and experienced Shehzad.

Azam, who had impressed in the middle order in the first ODI with an attacking half-century, was suddenly asked to open the innings.

The 21-year-old, playing in only his fifth match, failed to replicate his performance from the first ODI and fell for just four. Again, several players suffered due to Waqar’s insistence of not selecting Shehzad.

After losing the second ODI, the chopping and changing is almost certain to continue at Waqar’s whims — which often do not coincide with selecting the best eleven.

Despite being just 23, Shehzad is one of the more experienced men in the ODI side and is clearly one of the most talented batsmen at Pakistan’s disposal.

With six centuries to his name in 72 ODIs — surpassed only by Hafeez and Shoaib Malik — Shehzad remains a proven match-winner on his day; a commodity that cannot be easily disregarded in world cricket. His antics, both on and off the field, do sometimes leave a lot to be desired but a coach as highly respected and highly paid as Waqar should have a better man management policy than ‘my way or the highway’.

The opening spot has been Pakistan’s trouble position for many years now, and the head coach would do well to not alienate the one man who can solve it in the long run.

Waqar inherited a stable Test team so his real test comes in the ODI format. So far, he has been failing it; often at the expense of others.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 15^th, 2015.

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